\n<\/p>\n
After spending eight years in jail, a Nigerian televangelist accused of raping young women from his South African church has been found not guilty of all charges.<\/p>\n
Timothy Omotoso had denied the 32 charges in a trial that was broadcast live and gained huge interest across the country.<\/p>\n
In 2018, one witness told the court she had been raped by the pastor – who ran a church in the city of Port Elizabeth – when she was 14 years old.<\/p>\n
When delivering the verdict on Wednesday, the judge presiding over the trial said that Mr Omotoso had been found not guilty because prosecutors had mishandled the case.<\/p>\n
South Africa’s National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) shared a similar assessment, saying that “former prosecutors in the case acted improperly and the accused were not sufficiently cross-examined by the state”.<\/p>\n
The NPA said it will now “consider its legal options”.<\/p>\n
For his part, Mr Omotoso told the media he thanked God for the verdict.<\/p>\n
Hi co-accused, Lusanda Sulani and Zikiswa Sitho, were also found not guilty.<\/p>\n
Mr Omotoso was dramatically arrested at an airport in 2017 as he sought to leave the country.<\/p>\n
His trial was the first prominent rape case to be broadcast live in a country where sexual violence is rampant.<\/p>\n
The hearings attracted huge interest, and raised difficult questions about victims’ rights, impartiality and whether justice is best served by having television cameras in courtrooms.<\/p>\n
Following Wednesday’s verdict, Mr Omotoso will be deported to Nigeria, South African media outlet News24 reported.<\/p>\n